Primary Colors
by LogicalDreamer
Summary: AU Humanstuck - Sollux moves to a new school in the middle of the year and has to put up with all the crazies. Built-up-to pairings include - SolKar-centric, PB&J, FefEri, DaveJohn WOO Rated T for language because we all love KK
1. 1 Introductions

_Beep beep. Beep beep. Beep bee-  
_I slap my alarm clock's snooze button with as much grace as a wet cat. Gog, how annoying can one little electronic device be?

Slowly pushing the covers off myself, I sit up and stretch, yawning and wincing slightly as my back pops. I stayed up way too late last night, hunched over in my computer chair. Don't judge, Minecraft is addicting. Besides, I actually slept pretty well for once. What time is it, anyway?

I glance at the clock.

_7:45._

Fuck! I'm going to be late! And for the first day of school, no less! Great first impression, like I wasn't already overjoyed at the prospect of a new school in the first place.

I leap out of bed, struggling into a pair of gray skinny jeans, a t-shirt with a bee on it, and my favorite pair of Converse. Technically I have two favorite pairs, because I bought one pair of red and one of blue. It was impossible to choose between the best two colors in the world, so one day I wear red on the right, blue on the left, and the next day it's vice versa. Completely normal stuff.

I grab my glasses, which are 3-D style to hide my heterochromatic eyes, and my car keys from the table next to the door. Trying to hurry, I'm still tugging one shoe on as I stumble down the hall, practically groping the wall for a handhold. No time to brush my teeth, just maybe to grab a piece of toast and stuff all of my papers into my striped backpack.

_Thud._

Rushing too much and holding my shoe, I crash sideways into the very solid wall. Well, that hurt. I swear under my breath and haul myself back up, groaning at the pain in my now aching back. This is just perfect. At least I don't have to get one of my parents up; I finally got my drivers' license last month and can drive myself to school without irritating questions of what the day holds for me. Today's goal: don't get a speeding ticket.

I pull up to the school with absolutely no screeching, what are you talking about? The parking lot's crowded, wonderful, and the first bell's already rung. Frustrated, I slam my hand down onto the wheel, narrowly missing the horn. I have approximately seven minutes to get to class. Which, of course, is on the far side of campus. Doesn't really help that I've only been to this school once before for my schedule.

Grabbing my backpack on the way, I shut the door of my already banged up car with more force than necessary and start for class. Pre-Cal is first, in room 201, I think. Should be interesting. I'm actually not too bad at math. Numbers, computers and codes, those are the few things I'm good at.

Luckily, the halls are already thinning out, so I don't have to push anyone out of the way in my rush. I open the door to room 201, looking completely windblown and messy. I honestly don't give a fuck right now, I'm just glad I made it in time. It's not like I had time to do anything with myself this morning anyway.

And the bell chooses that moment to ring. Success. I find the first empty desk and pretty much collapse into it, running a tired hand through my hair.

The man at the front of the classroom looks up from his desk. "Glad you could make it, Mr..."

And now the teacher's decided to point out my tardiness. How charming. "Captor. Tholluckth Captor."

I facepalm inwardly. _Why, Sollux, why would you say that? _I've just displayed my extremely attractive lisp to everyone. Now I'll just a target for all of these lifeless jerks. Watch out for the kid in that desk on the end, there's a splash zone.

Yup, there were the snickers. I sigh.

"Welcome, Mr. Captor. I hope you'll make it a point to be more punctual in the future."

"Yeah."

The teacher, whose name is apparently Mr. Collins, leaves me alone after that. He just drones on and on about some equation and other math crap not a single teenager or even adult really cares about. I'm fine with that. Don't need to think about anything. Instead, I decide to take a subtle look around. Might as well get an idea of what kind of douche bags I'm going to be stuck with the rest of the year.

For starters, there's the kid who sits behind me. I didn't get a really good look at him before I sat down, but he looked pretty...flamboyant, for lack of a better word. He had a blonde streak going through his brown hair and what some people might call "hipster" glasses. He's got a purple scarf draped over a white v-neck and jean capries. The girl sitting to his right and diagonal to me has long, dark, curly hair and glasses with a modest skirt and a colorful tank top with a shell necklace. When she sees me peering at her, she smiles and gives a little wave. She seems pretty friendly. Looks like she spends a lot of time at the beach, judging by her skin tone.

The girl in front of her has short blonde hair that flips out at the ends. She has what I'm guessing is a seeing eye dog lying next to her desk, and a huge grin on her face. Must be blind, especially with those crazy red glasses on. Not that I have much room to talk. She's whispering to the boy sitting in front of me, who doesn't seem very pleased by this. All I can see of him is an over-sized gray sweatshirt and kind of fluffy, dark hair with an almost red tint to it. I can't hear their conversation very well, but he seems pretty grumpy by his body language.

I can't help by smirk when I hear, "What the ever-loving fuck are you even letting spew out of your shit-eating mouth, Terezi?"

It can't be helped . I lean forward, still grinning, to speak to him. "Pretty eloquent, aren't you?"

He whirls on me, and man, what is wrong with this kid? He looks like he hasn't slept in weeks, and he's got huge eyes that are currently imagining me being sawed in half by a chainsaw. They're a very rich brown, though, almost red, and are pretty interesting. I've never seen eyes like that before.

He notices my gaze.

"What the fuck do you want, asshat? One: stay out of fucking private conversations, and two: stop staring at me like I'm more pathetic looking than a skinny weirdo with 3-D glasses and an elementary school bee shirt."

Wow, okay, what magical rainbow toilet got stuck in this guy's mouth? I sit back in my chair and keep the smirk plastered across my face, but don't reply. He turns back around with a muttered, "Fuckass" and leaves me alone after that.

Class gets out after a mind-numbing hour, and I snatch my crap from under my desk and head for the door behind everyone else. As I'm going out, someone bumps my shoulder. It's the the pretty girl who waved at me earlier.

"Hi! My name's Feferi! You must be the new guy I've been hearing about. It's shore great to meet you!" She cheerfully holds out a hand for me to shake.

I just stare at her. It's surprising enough that someone's talking to me, but even more so that it's a girl and one as pretty as her! But I'll take it. Maybe this won't be such a bad start after all. I shake her hand.

"Nithe to meet you, too. My name'th-"

"Sollux, you said." She kind of giggles, and it's pretty cute. "This is Eridan."

The kid with the blonde streak in his hair saunters up and sticks out his hand, which is adorned with several rings. I could swear his chest has puffed out several inches. "Eridan Ampora, pleasure to meet you."

"Uh...hi." I shake his hand too. These kids are kind of formal, but it's not bad.

"So where's your next class?" Feferi asks, clutching her book bag.

"Umm..." I pull out my schedule and squint at it. "Englith, in room 112."

"Oh, great! We both have that next! Walk with us!" She smiles brightly, and I smile back.

"Okay."

Eridan looks a little miffed by this, and makes a point of walking between me and FF the entire time. Yeah, I'm calling her that from now on, got a problem? I wonder absently if they're an item, but that's not really worth pursuing at this point. I mean, it's barely second period of my first day.

- - - - - - - Time Screw - - - - - - -

The next few classes are pretty uneventful. I don't have fourth period with either FF or Eridan, but it's just history and I half doze off anyway. I haven't even heard a lecture yet and I'm already sleeping. I feel accomplished.

After fifteen minutes, I'm nearly out, slumped over my desk, when someone jostles my arm.

"Hey." A hissed whisper from my left. "Hey, you. Fuckass."

I sit up groggily and quickly adjust my glasses. "What?" Oh, it's that kid from first period. The one with bags under his eyes and a creative potty mouth. This should be interesting. "It'th you."

He rolls his eyes. "Yes, it's me. Wake up."

"I'm awake, thankth."

"Well, stay awake. It's annoying when people start to snore in class."

I'm a little startled. "I wath thnoring?"

"Quietly, but yeah, and it was fucking irritating, so stay awake."

"Oh, yeah, I'll thtay awake to pleathe some grumpy jerk I've jutht met. Ethpecially after a too thort night'th thleep and almotht being late to the firtht day of school. That'th not athking anything difficult." I didn't mean to snap at him, but gog, the kid is rude!

He glares at me, and something in his expressions shifts before he abruptly turns back to his desk. "Fuck you."

"What happened to that creativity I heard earlier, hm?" Why am I egging him on now? Gotta admit it, the kid is just too easily riled. I have to suppress a chuckle.

He just flips me off without looking up.

Well then.


	2. 2 Bloody Noses and New Friends

Lunch. The bell finally rings, and I stuff my notebook and pencils into my backpack. Better go and scout out places to eat or not eat lunch alone. FF was pretty nice, but she still seemed like the type that would never sit with me at lunch. Plus I just don't want to have to listen to Eridan's 'wweird,' accented come ons.

I start to get up from my desk, hefting my bag up over my shoulder. All goes well until I trip and my face makes a lovely introduction to the cold, hard floor. Face, meet floor. Pleasure to meet you, I'm just going to possibly smash all of your little face bones. Pardon me.

And now my nose is bleeding.

I shuffle my body to get my feet under me, and realize that some asshole tied my shoes together. What is this, fucking second grade?

There are some giggles to my left. I turn my head to glare at the culprits and am a little taken aback once I get a good look at them.

The first kid is incredibly tall and lanky, and I would know. He's got a crazy mop of dark hair and really baggy, polka dotted pants. I'm not even sure they're actual pants, they look more like pajama bottoms to me. His face...oh my gog, he's wearing clown face paint. Under the face paint, he's grinning lazily, and I'm almost positive he's as high as a kite. He's got one long arm draped over the second kid, who's in a wheelchair. He's got a fluffy brown mohawk, but other than that, he looks pretty meek with black shorts and button up shirt. Missing his legs from the knees down, poor guy.

They're both snickering a little, but the one in the wheelchair immediately stops when I look up, and quickly wheels himself over.

"O-oh my gog, I'm, uh, so sorry! We did not mean to, um, give you a bloody nose." He seems sincere but also squeamish at the sight of blood.

"Yeah, motherfucker, didn't think you'd get all up and hurt like that," drawls the tall kid, leaning down to look at me.

Self-conscious, I gingerly reach two fingers up to my nose. They come away very red, and it feels gross on my upper lip. Better get to the bathroom before I turn into a complete mess.

"You know what, it'th fine, jutht let me get cleaned up."

"Aw, let us help you with that."

Ooookay. "Thankth, guyth, really, but I jutht want to-"

"N-no, I feel bad. I would like to, uh, help, if you don't mind, that is..." the mohawk kid stutters out. "Oh, my name is Tavros, and this is, uh, Gamzee."

"Nice to meet you, motherfucker." Gamzee sticks out a hand, then suddenly realizes that your free hand is bloody and retracts it, instead moving to help you up. "We'll get you all fixed up and then it'll just be bitchtits wicked."

I almost laughed at that. What is with the people around here and their weird language? Not that I mind, it's just funny. "Thankth."

They hauled me off to the bathroom, which I was relieved it wasn't far, because Gamzee made me ride on Tavros's lap the whole way there and I think the poor guy was more awkward about it than me.

As the two of them helped me stop the bleeding and wash off the blood, I can't help asking a few questions about my fellow classmates.

"Do you guyth know Feferi and Eridan?"

The stoner chuckles and nearly pokes my eye out with his paper towel. "Fuck yeah, they're like school royalty."

Tavros nods. "I guess you could say they are, uh, popular, but Feferi is very nice."

I understandly caught his implication that Eridan was much less so and grinned, cracking a bit of dried blood on my upper lip.

"Okay, tho what'th up with that angry kid?"

"Y'mean Karkat?"

I shrugged. "Thure, I don't know hith name."

Tavros went to throw away a bloodied paper towel and washed his hands. "I think you are, um, talking about Karkat Vantas."

"Yeah, that little motherfucker's always pissed 'bout something. But he's one of my best bros," says Gamzee, getting distracted by the miracle of soap dispensers.

I never would have thought that, but okay. "He theemth like a real jerk."

Gamzee presses the soap button thing one more time and marvels at the bubbles in his hand. "Nah, man, he's just kinda protective. Gotta lot of shit goin' on."

I'm not sure what that means, but now I'm curious. Not to sound cliche, but it sounds like there's more to this kid than meets the eye.

Tossing the rest of the paper towels away, I stare at my face in the mirror. Same angular face, thin nose, and pointy chin. Blood-free now, though. I sigh and turn away, thanking my two new...friends? for their help. "Thankth again."

"Not a problem, Solbro." Gamzee waves as he wheels Tavros to the cafeteria. "You coming to lunch?"

"I think I'll jutht go thtraight outthide. I'm not really hungry." It's true, I just want to finish the school day and get back to my computer, but I still have two more periods to get through. Will the torture that is my first day of school never end?

"Oh, uh, okay, Sollux, we'll see you around then." Tavros waves shyly as Gamzee turns to go inside.

I wave back and started for the nearest tree to sit write down some codes I'd thought up in the last few periods. Shortcuts are the best. Might as well make some use of this time.

Settling my bag and my back against the tree, I make myself comfortable and pull out my other notebook. It's chock full of random bits of code and sometimes doodles I make when I'm bored. If I had more friends I might write notes in it, but sadly, nothing has gotten to that point.

I've been working for about ten minutes when I hear a rustling and notice a shadow nearing my position.

"What the fuck are you doing here?"

I look up and see at that angry ki- oops, Karkat. Why do I keep running into him? "Thup. What do you want?"

"For you to move out of my spot. I always sit at this tree, and some new douchemuffin coming to school isn't going to take it from me. Move." He makes a shooing motion with one hand.

Gog, he's irritating and is probably going to end up giving me a headache to take home as a souvenir. "No."

He just stares at me, eyes smoldering. "What." It's not even a question.

"I'm not moving. Go find a new thpot."

He shifts his weight and crosses his arms, staring daggers. "Move your ass before I move it for you with my foot."

"I thaid I'm not moving! Leave me the fuck alone!" I throw back at him, ready to get up and just shove him away. I could, too. I'm a good head taller than him.

He looks like he's about to kick me in the face, but instead flops down next to me, throwing his backpack to the side.

I just look blankly at him. "What are you doing?"

"Not letting my spot be taken, what the fuck's it look like?"

"Whatever. Jutht don't talk to me." I roll my eyes and turn back to my notebook. What was that one code again? Forward slash, zero, one, one...Now I can't remember! Fuck! The interruption chased my coding thoughts away, and it doesn't help that Karkat is watching over my shoulder and I can just feel it. I stiffen and turn to look at him.

"Do you want thomething or are you jutht being creepy?"

He glares at me again. Does he ever stop glaring? "Shut up."

"All you've done thince I've met you is inthult me and just be a general pain in the ath. Buthth off."

"Was that a fucking bee pun?"

"Yeth."

"Wow. You are even more sad than I thought, and that shouldn't be possible."

"Why do you feel the need to hathle me tho much? Don't you have anything better to do, or are you jutht that pathetic that you thtart jumping the new kid?"

He viciously tears into his sandwich and glares at me over it, and he suddenly reminds me of one of those angry little terrier dogs that are just dying to bite your head off. Pretty accurate description.

Finishing his bite, he resumes his slandering. "I'm hassling you because you irritate me, I keep running into you, and I have nothing better to do. Also your codes suck." He jerks a toward my notebook.

Oh, _no_ he didn't. "No, they don't. And like you could do any better. You'd blow up a computer."

"You fucking nerd. You might be able to type faster than me, but I can still code better than you."

"Doubt it, idiot."

"Moron with his head up his ass."

"Wow, PMThing much."

"Fucktard."

"Athhat."

We just stare at each other for a second, seething, and then the corner his mouth twitches. I can't help it. I start chuckling, and then full on laughing. He joins in after a second, and it isn't long until we're rolling in the grass and laughing our heads off. What's so funny, I don't even know, but we're still laughing. Maybe we're just idiots.

"First time anyone's given that back to me," he pants, rubbing at his eyes and smiling...well, not completely scowling.

"About time," I snort, holding my aching sides.

He props himself up on his elbows and grabs the rest of his sandwich. "You're not half bad, Tholluckth."

"Thame for you, KK." I grin at him.

"Did you just give me a nickname?"

"Oh, come on. How many people have two K'th in their name?"

"Fine." He finishes his sandwich in silence, and I go back to my notebook, but somehow I made a friend in this lunch period. And I made it by fighting with him. Go figure.


	3. 3 The Torture of Art and PE

Hey, guys! Random author's note here, hahaha! I just wanted to thank all of you wonderful people who favorited, followed, and reviewed this story - it's my first fanfiction, and it's encouraging to have you guys like it so much!

Anyway, let's get a bit of a plotline started in here!

- - - - - AWKWARD LINE BREAK - - - - -

Apparently I have art next, because taking one semester of performing or visual arts is required in this school district. KK has it next, too, though, so at least I'm not alone. I don't mind art that much since you don't need to be great at it to pass, but I seriously wish I could just go on my laptop for the whole period. I can spend days on that thing without even noticing.

Karkat walks with me, his bag banging against his leg and him swearing under his breath when the corner of a textbook hits hard.

"Tho what'th art like? The teacher okay?"

He grunts. "Okay. Just kind of lets us do our own thing unless we're taking some weird quiz. Seriously, who's gonna remember shit like what year some painting was made? Who even gives a fuck? Not me. Not a single fuck is given this day."

I chuckle and he glances sideways at me, a slightly puzzled look wrinkling his nose, and I have to smother a smile. He's like...I don't know, some kind of cat or something.

He opens the door and doesn't catch it behind him, letting it almost shut on my fingers. How helpful.

The teacher looks up as we come in and throws me a bright smile, not bothering to try and penetrate Karkat's cloud of utter pissiness.

"Hello! You must be Sollux Captor. We've just started a project with colored pencils. Grab a box and sit wherever you'd like. One of the other students can explain the assignment to you. If you have questions or need to print something, just come ask me, okay?"

"Yeah, thankth." I smile back. Might as well make a good first impression.

I follow Karkat over to a table in the back, and discover that apparently the blind girl with the dog has this class. Terezi Pyrope, as I've been told her name is. Great. Why would she even pick art? I just hope I don't have to fill in a color-by-number for her.

"Hey, Karkles! Hey, Sollux. Did you get over Karkle's bitchiness and become friends all of a sudden?" She flashes a toothy grin and drums her bright red nails against the desk.

...What? How did she know it was us that walked up, much less that we were some kind of friends as of the last half hour? Screw all of that, how does she even know who I am?

She seems to notice my confusion, and giggles. "I'm not completely blind, I can see vague shapes and colors. I also have a very good sense of smell. Karkles here smells like cherries and rain, while you..." She trails off and leans in uncomfortably close to me, taking a big whiff. "...smell like honey." Cocking her head to the side, she grins again, bigger. "Interesting taste."

Gog, this girl is weird. And those red glasses are just creepy.

"Right...anyway, I'm Tholluckth, and I guess we're friendth now, yeah."

KK grumbles an affirmative and slides into the seat next to her, so I just plop myself across from him at the square table, avoiding the dog laying underneath.

"Tho what eckthactly are we doing?" I set my blank paper and box of pencils down, painstakingly aligning them with the edge of the desk. Don't ask, I've got OCD tendencies.

"Use the colored pencils to design an album cover. You can copy one that already exists, or make up one," Terezi explains, sticking her tongue out slightly as she concentrates on drawing, um...they just look like squiggles to me. Maybe it's an artistic thing. Interpretation and all that.

Karkat slams his fists on the desk and mutters a stream of curses. "I hate this assignment!"

"It'th not even that hard, come on. You can make up thomething, for goodneth thaketh." I glance at him, and he's staring at this paper like he's trying to make it spontaneously combust. "Gog, KK, calm yourthelf. It'th jutht an art athignment."

"I hate art."

"Have fun failing then." I turn back to my own paper and decide to do an album cover of Skrillex. Not my favorite group, but pretty cool. But maybe I'll just use red and blue for most of the colors. Yeah, that's what I'll do.

"I guess I'll do Mayday Parade."

I'm a little startled and look up at him, and he's still glaring at the paper, but it looks more like he's thinking hard than trying to destroy the innocent sheet of paper. He catches me and glares, with- is that red on his cheeks? Why would he be embarrassed of liking a band like that?

"Got a problem?"

I duck my head. "No, I've never even heard any of their music."

"Hmph." He gets up huffily and goes to ask the teacher to print out a reference photo of the album he wants, and after a moment I follow. I definitely can't remember all the details of my album from memory.

After getting my picture printed, I make my way back to our table in the back and stop. An interesting scene of Terezi drawing on KK's face with pastels is occupying our table. I think that's what the little chalk-like thing she's using is called. Where she got it, I have no idea, but she has a red one and is giggling madly as she draws little hearts and what seem to be dragons. Pretty good for a blind chick, really, but for some reason it really irritates me. Karkat doesn't seem too pleased either.

"Terezi, get the fuck off me!" he screeches, flailing and causing most of the class to turn their heads and look at our table. I'm kind of amused by the whole thing, but I'm still irritated that she managed to pin him against his desk and draw all that crap and...She just licked it off his cheek! Why is this girl not in a mental institution?

"OH MY FUCKING GOG GET OFF!" He squirms desperately and finally breaks free, rubbing fiercely at his now damp cheeks with an absolutely disgusted look on his face.

Everyone else gradually turns back to their work, and the teacher has chosen to ignore his language. She's probably used to it. I cover my annoyance by folding my arms and leaning back in my chair, snickering quietly. Terezi is still cackling and holding her sides.

Karkat turns to me, still scrubbing at his cheek and scowling so deeply I'm surprised his mouth doesn't just fall off his face. "Consider yourself lucky, assmunch."

"Oh, I am." I smirk. "Lucky that I got to watch that from front a front row theat."

"Shut the fuck up." He slides his chair out with an obnoxious squeak. "I'm going to the bathroom to wash this shit off me." After a second thought, he grabs his backpack with a dark, menacing look to Terezi.

She just grins evilly and turns back to her paper, pocketing the red pastel. I guess it was hers to begin with. On a side thought, I wonder if she draws on people constantly. Oh gog. Am I next?

Karkat stalks out after a few words to the teacher and I go back to my drawing. It's not very good, but it's a start, and honestly I don't care that much. It's just art.

He finally comes back with about five minutes left in the period, and shoves his portfolio into the cupboard where all of our class's work goes when we don't take it home. I copy his actions, but much more gently, and go back to the desk to check my schedule. I pull it out of my backpack, where it's gotten crumpled almost beyond recognition. One look, and I groan.

KK glances at me as he sits back down to wait for the bell. "What?"

"P.E. necktht. The ultimate torture." I crumple my schedule and toss it back into my backpack.

"You, too, huh?"

I look at him in surprise. "You have P.E. latht period too?"

"No shit. Wonder what medieval exercises they prepared to run us into the ground with today." The bell rings and he heaves his bag onto his shoulder and pushes through the crowd for the door, tugging me behind by the wrist. "Get to the locker room fast before the upper classfuckers block the door. The seniors like to mess with everyone younger than them and make them late for class."

I let myself be dragged, because I do not want to have to fight through the crowds myself, and I still don't even know where the locker rooms are.

He lets go of me once we reach the doors and darts inside. We pass a few rows, and he turns to look at me over his shoulder. "You can grab a locker in my row if you want. Or not. I don't actually care."

I shrug and follow him into the row. "Thure, why not?"

"Wouldn't go on that side, though."

I raise one eyebrow.

"Equius Zahhak's locker is two columns over. He sweats like a fucking ape and takes up twice as much room."

"Ah." I quickly move over to his other side, and one sign up with the locker room adviser later, I have my P.E. locker.

We both change quickly, shrugging off normal clothes and into baggy P.E. shorts and t-shirts. Guys start pouring into the locker room, and as Karkat and I squeeze out, I get a glimpse of the Equius guy. KK was barely exaggerating. The guy was huge, muscular, and sweaty and gog, he smelled like a years supply of dirty socks.

We go inside the gym to wait for everyone else. I lean against the wall, one leg propped up against it, and Karkat just slides down and crossed his arms. Looking down at him, all I can see was the top of his fluffy hair. Shorty. I resist the urge to ruffle it in the most irritating manner possible.

"All right, line up!"

Karkat goes to sit down and I walk up to our teacher, a short, rather bowl-legged guy with a baseball cap. He points me over to an empty spot, and I grin and give Karkat a thumbs up. I'm not really sure why, but I felt it needed to be done. He rolls his eyes, but I watch carefully and he smiles just the tiniest bit as he turns away. Mental note: Make Karkat be as awkward as possible.

"Okay, hooligans, we're doing something new. For the next few weeks, all of you are going to be divided up into two random teams, and we'll be having contests that demand physical effort from each and every one of you." One of the two P.E. teachers stops and pointedly looks down at a group of giggling girls, who immediately sober up. "We expect full participation, or you will fail this semester and earn a U in citizenship. Am I clear?"

A vague murmur flows through the gathered students with a few outstanding boos. Luckily, the teachers ignore them. otherwise we might have to run laps.

"Now make two lines, one of girls and one of boys. It's not that difficult, now move!"

There's a general scramble for a few minutes before these lines are created. I end up a ways away from KK, and try to catch his eye, but he's just looking straight ahead with a grumpy expression.

"Red. Blue. Red. Blue." The teachers go down each line, alternating between students to choose the teams. I'm personally a fan of both colors, but I end up on the red team, and so does KK. Excellent.

"What kind of thtuff do you think we're doing?"

He shrugs and looks at the floor. "Stupid stuff. You never know with these people. I swear they just sit around at home trying to think of ways to improve their own shitty lives by ruining ours."

A whistle blows.

"Okay, now each team needs to select a team captain."

I look around our team, and I see a few people that have been in my classes, but no one I really know. Suddenly, a chant of, "Dave! Dave! Dave!" starts up and I look to see who they're talking about. Some tall, skinny kid with platinum blonde hair and aviator shades is being crowded around, and he's got a classic smirk tugging at his lips. Who wears sunglasses in P.E.?

"Oh my fucking gog, no. Of course they'd choose Strider-douche." Karkat tugs at his messy hair in frustration, and I grab at his hands to get him to stop.

"Okay, one, thtop doing that or you'll go bald by thirty-five. Two, who'th thith Dave Thtrider kid?"

"You see him." Karkat gestures vaguely with a limp toss of his arm. "Most insufferable prick to stain these halls with his oh-so-cool Converse."

"Better than Eridan," I mutter, still observing this Dave kid.

Karkat snorts, and I turn to stare at him. "Did you jutht laugh at thomething I thaid?"

His look of amusement quickly fades to a trademark glare. "No."

"Yeth, you did."

"No, I didn't."

"Uh, KK, pretty thure you did."

"Shut the fuck up."

A triumphant grin spreads across my face. "I win. And I'm totally keeping thcore."

He crosses his arms again and appears to be trying to turn me into acid with his eyes. "Arrogant bastard."

The leader of the blue team is a total contrast to Dave, a skinny, nerdy looking kid with square glasses, Harry Potter hair, and a ridiculous overbite. From what I can hear, his name is John, and apparently he and Dave are actually really close friends, because they shake hands and even brofist, the ultimate sign of best bros. That kind of comes as a surprise, but okay. Weirder things have happened. The teams part again as the teachers write down each team member's name, and then they proceed to explain today's 'game,' as they seem to be calling the slave labor that is the P.E. activity.

"Today's game is called The Blob. You'll be paired up, and each of the team captains will be blobs. It's basically tag, and the blobs are it. If you get tagged by them, you link arms and join them, and the blob gets bigger. Once a blob is big enough for it, it can split apart as long as each section has at least five people. The team captain with the most people in his blob wins today's game. And you have to actually run, don't just join your team captain, you cheaters."

"What does the winner get?" yells some random student.

"The day's winning team gets to go in the locker room two minutes early, and at the end of the two weeks, the winning team will get a day off from P.E. to watch movies in the empty Health classroom."

Cheers erupt from groups of kids, but I just roll my eyes and speak out of the side of my mouth to Karkat.

"Woo, an hour off P.E. to watch some 'thportth movie'. I am thrilled."

He makes no response besides a quiet _tch_.

Well, if he's not going to do anything, I am. I grab his arm and link it with mine, and jog over to a corner of the gym, pulling him in tow. He flails at me indignantly.

"What the fuck, Sollux, what are you doing?"

"I'm not failing another year of P.E. becauthe you won't move your lathy ath."

He makes a growling sound but stops being so difficult and I'm relieved I won't have to drag him around the entire period. He's not heavy, but I'm a bit of a weakling. Yeah, I said it. Don't judge.

Dave and John are paired up with people and ushered to opposite ends of the gym. Dave has his arm linked with a slender girl with shaggy blonde hair and dark lipstick on. John has another girl with round glasses and long, dark hair. I can't tell very well from the distance, but it looks like she has buckteeth. I wonder absently if they're related.

One of the teachers blows a whistle, and both teams immediately race for the pair nearest them.

"Shit, go, go, go," hisses Karkat. "Strider's coming over here."

He tugs me off to the right, and I'm a little surprised at his speed. I run easily with my long legs, but he's still pretty fast, and we manage to avoid Dave's team as he goes for another pair in front of us. There's a bit of a lull as both blobs make for the opposite end of the gym, and I use the opportunity to try and get some information.

"I'm thtill trying to get everyone thtraight. Who are thothe girlth with Dave and John?"

"Rose Lalonde is with Strider. Some freaky goth chick, she's always in the library with her girlfriend Kanaya writing or reading or something. She's his half sister or something. Jade Harley is the other one, and she's Egbert's cousin. Really bubbly and annoying as fuck."

"Oh." So they are related.

We dodge as John and Jade come around in another pass, and two pairs near us get tagged, but we manage to avoid getting tagged ourselves.

"Can we switch arms?" Karkat asks, his cheeks a little red. The running must be beginning to get to him. "My elbow is starting to stick."

"Thure, whatever." I move around him and grab his other arm, and he kind of avoids looking at me. I'm not sure why.

"They're coming around again, go!" This time I'm the one pulling him, and we get out of the way just in time. The two blobs are getting bigger and harder to avoid.

Karkat and I manage to stay untagged for a while, but eventually one of Dave's blobs tags us and we have to join them. The teachers blow their whistles at that moment, and they count up the number of people on each blob and who was part of which blob, and finally the bell rings. John and the blue team get to go in first, but it's last period, and no one on our team really cares. Karkat and I just lean against the wall in silence for the allotted two minutes, and finally we're allowed in.

I slip out of my gym shorts and t-shirt, and reach for my other clothes. The worst part about having P.E. last period is that it's hot out, but you still have to change back into your regular clothes unless it's the end of the week and you're taking them home to wash anyway. Out of the corner of my eye I notice Karkat spacing out on me, and I smirk, snapping my fingers in front of his face.

"Like what you thee?"

He blinks, looks at me, registering what I said, and blushes slightly. "I don't see much, you skinny ass." He pokes me in the ribs before turning back to his own locker and getting dressed.

I pull on my jeans and shirt and run my fingers through my hair. It's too bad I didn't get to gel it this morning, it would look a lot better, but oh well. School day's over anyway. I can finally go home and get on my laptop. I swear I'm going to develop withdrawal symptoms soon.

"Oh, hey, KK."

He turns back to me, shrugging on his backpack. "What?"

"Do you have a Pethterchum? I'm buthy on my computer a lot but I'd like to talk to you more outhide of thchool if it'th cool with you."

Rolling his eyes, he pulls out a scrap of paper and scribbles something, handing it to me. "Nerd."

"You code, too, albeit badly."

"I don't code _well _all fucking day."

"Whatever." I sling my backpack over my shoulder and head for the door, lifting one hand in goodbye. "Thankth. I'll thee you tomorrow, KK."

"Don't remind me, fuckass."

I arrive home pretty quickly, as the bus is actually on time for once. Unlocking my door and going up to my room, I finally remember and look at the crumbled bit of paper in my hand. _carcinoGeneticist. _I can't help but grin. I made it through my first day and I've already made a friend. Maybe more than one. Things are looking up.


	4. 4 Bonding

Hey, so, I didn't think I'd be updated again so soon, but I had a literary epiphany at like 1:30 two nights ago and I now have the entire basic plotline figured out, but this is as far as it's been written. I will be in Europe for the next few weeks, unfortunately, and I don't know how much access I will have to the Internet. I will make sure to have some chapters to post immediately when I get back, though, so don't leave! :D

Anyway...have some angst, it will return.

- - - - - AWKWARD LINE BREAK - - - - -

It's been a week. A week of putting up with Eridan's jealous antics over Feferi; a week of Tavros and Gamzee's idiotic but somewhat endearing pranks; a week of Terezi pissing me off for being nosy and touchy with...just about everyone; and a week of arguing, playing stupid P.E. games, and talking with Karkat. He has truly become my best friend. In fact, I'm talking with him right now.

TA: hey 2o kk what are you doiing twoday  
CG: YOU KNOW I STILL CAN'T BELIEVE YOU TYPE YOUR LISP.  
CG: IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T FIGURED THIS OUT, IT'S ACTUALLY AVOIDABLE ONLINE.  
TA: oh my gog kk 2top biitchiing about that  
TA: ju2t tell me what youre doiing tomorrow  
CG: FUCK, OKAY.  
CG: NOT REALLY ANYTHING.  
CG: WHY, WANT TO HANG OUT?  
TA: no 2hiit that2 why ii a2ked  
CG: OKAY, YEAH.  
CG: LET'S HANG OUT.  
TA: 2weet  
TA: want two come over at 2ay 2  
CG: S ISN'T A TIME, IDIOT.  
TA: are you 2eriiou2ly 2tiill on that  
CG: YES.  
CG: BUT FINE, I'LL BE THERE AT TWO.  
CG: SEE YOU THEN  
CG: FUCK, I'VE GOT TO GO.  
CG: BYE.

carcinoGeneticist [CG] has ceased pestering twinArmaggedons [TA]

I sigh and push away from my desk. I still haven't learned much about Karkat's home life, but I've picked up a few hints from his abrupt departures from our conversations, marks that I catch glimpses of in the locker room, and Gamzee. It's pretty obvious that he has issues with his parents, but I really don't know much. All I know is that sometimes Karkat comes to school and smells vaguely like alcohol, and I'm pretty sure it's not from him. I feel really bad, but what am I supposed to do? I want to help.

But right now I just need to pick up my room for Karkat to come over. We haven't actually hung out outside of school yet, and my room is always a pigsty. Despite my OCD, I've got bundles of wires everywhere, video game controllers, game cases, and a few stray comic books. Gog, why am I such a slob sometimes? I grab what I can and just stuff it into the closet. It actually starts to pile up quickly, and by the time I finally slid the door shut, there's a good waist high pile of pure crap in there. Let's hope I don't end up needing anything from the bottom.

I finish 'cleaning up' and sit down at my computer to play some more Minecraft. This game is so addicting, I swear, there should be intervention groups for it. Plus therapy groups for those creepers.

There's a thumping noise from downstairs. KK's here already? I guess I lost track of time.

I dash downstairs, running a hand through my hair as I go. Why am I doing that? It's just Karkat. Never mind.

He starts knocking again as I reach the bottom of the stairs, though it's starting to sound less like knocking and more like he's just banging the butt of his fist against the door. That's probably what he's doing.

"Captor, open the fucking door!"

Just to be a total ass, I time it so that when I open the door, his fist is moving and the momentum throws him off balance. I'm prepared though, and managed to avoid getting weakly punched.

"What the actual fuck, Captor?"

He catches his balance and glares up at me. I just smirk back.

"Welcome to my houthe, KK."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." He pushes past me and kicks his shoes off onto the rug. "What are we doing?"

I sigh and close the door. "I don't know, I jutht thought we'd hang out. I have video gameth upthtairth if you want."

"Fine, but I'm going to own your ass." He sends me a challenging glare, and I just grin back.

"Doubt it."

He stomps up the stairs and I follow, but suddenly I notice that he's holding his shoulder as he walks. It's unlikely he hurt it trying to blast my door to smithereens. Biting my tongue, I don't say anything, but I wonder if I should. Isn't talking about problems supposed to help? Being the indecisive guy I am, I just head up the stairs after him, skipping the last step.

We go into my room, and Karkat just stares for a minute. I suppose there's a lot to look at, but it's not like it's actually interesting.

He finally moves to flop down in front of my gaming system, and turns back to comment.

"Nice room. How long did it take you to dump all this shit into it?"

I just roll my eyes. "Ath long ath it took you to get here." I gesture at the games he's sat in front of. "Thee one you like?"

"Yeah." He points, and an evil grin spreads over my face when I realize what it is. The game is MarioKart, one of my older games, and one that I've played since I was little. I am a master at that thing.

"I hope you know what you're getting into," I warn him, smirking and moving forward to set up the game. "Thith ith one of my betht gameth."

"Not for long."

"You're on."

We sit down, and are soon racing our way down Koopa Cape, avoiding obstacles, CPU players, and trying to knock each other into the ocean. I pull ahead pretty quickly, and manage to make it to first, but Karkat hits me hard with a red shell and I'm forced to forfeit first place to him.

"Ha!"

I glance over at him and he's got a huge triumphant grin on his face. It lasts until I hit a turbo blast and rocket past him.

"Thee you later, KK."

"FUCK!"

I snicker, and he tries to catch up, but I manage to stay ahead. Someone picks up lightning and shrinks both of us, but I manage to keep my lead for a few more minutes. We're closing in on the final lap, and the finish line is looming, when suddenly someone in the back hits me with one of those leader-seeking blue shells. Probably King Boo; that little ghost is out to get me. I swear under my breath as Karkat passes me and the finish line; he throws his controller at me.

"I beat you! Ha! Stick that on your ego and suck it!"

I haven't had that good of a race in...well, ever, so I'm grinning. However, I still have that gamer's ego he mentioned, so I'm a little frustrated and body slam him sideways. I don't weigh much, but he falls over and I hear him gasp. Instantly, I get off him and look at him through my glasses.

"Are...are you okay?"

"Fuck, yes, I'm fine," he spits at me, grimacing. He's clutching his shoulder again, and I realize that I hit it square on with my own bony joints.

"Oh my gog, KK, I'm thorry! I even notithed that your thoulder wath hurting you and I thtill...I'm thorry!"

He winces and lets go of his shoulder, looking at me, and all of a sudden I realize that his sleeve is damp.

"KK...your thoulder..."

He whips his head down to look at it, and swears several times under his breath. "I'll be right back. Where's your bathroom?"

For some reason, I can't stop staring at his shoulder, which is getting wetter by the second. That has to be blood. "Just outthide, firtht door on the left."

He walks out slowly, leaning ever so slightly to the side and clutching it, and he's gone for quite a while. I wait and just stare blankly at the screen, trying to figure this out. How did he hurt himself? Did he get in a fight? Should I go help him?

A slightly shaky voice from the bathroom disturbs my thoughts.

"Do you have any, um...what the fuck do you call it...antiseptic?"

"Yeth."

There was an awkward pause.

"Are you going to tell me where or do I have to hit you?"

I sigh and get up, tottering into the bathroom and leaning against the door frame. Then stiffen. Karkat has taken off his too-big, long sleeved shirt and is holding a damp washcloth to his shoulder. There are lacerations and little cuts decorating his shoulder, and some of the deeper ones are bleeding. His face is screwed up in pain, and he's trying to look menacing but failed miserably.

Lowering myself down on my long legs, I open the cupboard and rummage around for the antiseptic.

"KK." I keep my voice low and serious. "How did that happen?"

All I hear is the shuffling of his socks, and I know that he's probably trying to come up with a story to get me off his back. Grabbing the bottle, I shut the cupboard with a bang and stand up, whirling around to look down at him.

"Don't lie to me, KK, thomething happened and you are going to tell me."

He glares up at me, starting to cross his arms but wincing and leaving them at his sides. I keep his gaze for a moment before grabbing the washcloth and giving it a good dose of antiseptic. I take his other arm firmly and spin him so his injured shoulder is facing me.

"Thtart talking."

"Fine." He sighs and I hear his breath catch as I start applying the antiseptic, but he soon begins speaking. "You want the whole story? I'll give you the whole fucking story. But I'm sitting down for it." Stepping away from my grasp, he sits down on the toilet cover and turns again so I can work on his arm easily.

"Five years ago, my mom was still here. We had it okay, not a ton of money, but we made it work, and my dad was pretty relaxed. He and my mom would go out every week or so for a drink, and sometimes they even stayed home and I'd just stay upstairs and mind my own business. Didn't even want to know what shit went on. But my mom stopped going on these little date things for a while, and my dad stopped asking her to because he started having to work later. He'd come home later each night, more tired and less sober. My mom started to get sick of it, and she started spending even less time at home. That just pissed my dad off, and he would yell at me a lot. I just gave his bullshit right back to him."

If the circumstances hadn't been so horribly serious, I would have chuckled at that.

"A few months like this went past, and then my mom came home with news: She was pregnant. It wasn't my dad's."

He paused for a moment, tensing up when I accidentally brushed extra antiseptic on one cut. I murmur a "Sorry" quietly and I can just barely see him nod.

"My dad was already drunk, and basically he hit her. A few times. She screamed at him and he called her a slutty bitch and the next day she was gone. We threw all of her stuff out, along with any pictures. He leaves almost every night now, sometimes for days, and when he comes back he's stone drunk and sometimes he bea-" His voice catches and I glance up from wrapping bandages around his shoulder. His head is bowed, and his bare shoulders are shaking almost imperceptibly.

I gently place my palm on the back of his neck, and his muscles twitch.

"You okay, KK?"

He rubs at his eyes, hard, and returns to his curled up position, avoiding meeting my eyes. "Do I fucking look okay to you?"

I really have no idea of what to do, so I just kind of move to stand behind him and lean down so I can hug him from behind, avoiding his newly patched up shoulder. I can just feel him stiffen, but he doesn't move to push me away, just takes a deep, shuttering breath and lets it out. His heart is beating quickly.

"Sometimes he beats me, because he blames me for making my mom leave. I...I know he's just drunk and looking for a scapegoat. But this happened last night when he came home again and threw a fucking bottle at me. It was already cracked, and just kind of shattered."

I can't even look at him, I just let my eyes close behind my glasses and give him what I hope is a comforting squeeze.

"Gog, KK...I'm thorry. I had no idea. Ith there...ith there anything I can do?"

He snorts, and turns to face me, a little red. "You can stop hugging me while I'm half naked."

That, of course, causes me to flush in embarrassment and I immediately withdraw my arms. "Tho thorry for trying to give you a comfort hug."

Heaving himself off the toilet, he grabs his shirt with his uninjured arm and pulls it on. He can't get it over his head without gritting his teeth, so I finally sigh and help him. He mutters a grudging thank you and makes his way back to my bedroom, sitting on the bed. I follow him after replacing the antiseptic bottle and flop next to him, stretching out on my back. There's another moment of silence.

"Thanks."

I look over at him, and he's watching me from his sitting position. He turns his head away as I look at him, and for some reason his cheeks are red again, but he continues, rubbing his eyes again.

"Thanks for...for helping, and listening, and caring. The only other person I let this shit slip to is Gamzee, and that was only because he wouldn't stop giving me his fucking puppy dog eyes."

Shocked, I sit up and stare at him. "Theriouthly?"

He nods and finally looks me right in the eye. His eyes are little puffy with their usual bags underneath, but they're kind of shining at me and he's actually smiling. Karkat Vantas is smiling, and at me, albeit hardly showing any teeth. It's still a smile though, and I return it.

His cheeks flush again, and he lowers his gaze, punching me in the stomach. "If you tell anyone about this, I will find Feferi and tell her that you let all of your pet fish die."

I cough and poke him in return and let the annoyed tone return to my voice, though I'm still grinning. "I've never had any pet fihth."

"Doesn't matter."

Hiding my grin, I poke him again playfully, and he slaps my hand away. "Wanna play thome more MarioKart?"

"Yes, but no weak body slams."

"Tho full forthe body thlamth are okay?"

"Fuck you, Captor."


	5. 5 Hanging Out

Ohhhh my gosh, you guys are so full of awesomesauce! All the reviews, watches and favorites mean a lot! Sorry about the wait, but Europe was fun and gave me some time to plan out a few more details, sooo...hope you like it! Prepare for angst, though, I must warn you. Also, I will have to up the rating for extreme alcohol references in the next chapter.

Constructive criticism and comments are always appreciated! :3

- - - - - AWKWARD LINE BREAK - - - - -

A few more weeks pass. I've started to actually get used to this school and even fit in, as much as one can fit in with the bunch of random people I consider friends. Not that I'm so normal myself. We all just put up with each other's freakishness.

The bell rings for lunch, and Karkat and I walk out of history together, backpacks swinging. Karkat is brandishing his art portfolio like some kind of lethal paper weapon.

"I can't even fucking believe I had to take this shitty stuff home. It's not even worth the fucking time in class! I have things to do at home with my time. Important things."

I chuckle and hit him with my bag. "What would conthume your time, the wall ath you thtare at it?"

"Captor, one of these days I am going to ram my textbooks down that ass-munching mouth of yours."

"If you can reach it, which I doubt."

I spot Feferi waving cheerfully at me and give a small wave back. We've gotten the chance to talk quite a bit in second period, and she's got a very infectious, bubbly personality that can get you talking. The only problem is that Eridan always butts his stupid hipster face in - and I mean butts, he has a horrendous butt chin - and I swear the guy couldn't take a hint if it hung him with his own scarf.

We pass a row of lockers where Dave and John are standing hand in hand, John babbling excitedly about something, gesturing wildly, and Dave just listening with the smallest of smiles. Constant poker face, my ass.

I give Dave a nod as we pass, and he returns it. We've talked a bit since I discovered I have one class with him, and he's not too bad when he's not being an insufferable prick. We joke about Karkat a lot. He says it's ironic, and I have no clue why but whatever, let the cool kid have his irony.

I follow Karkat over to our usual spot by the tree, which Karkat promptly takes without leaving any space for me. Huffing in annoyance, I toss my bag heavily into his lap and plop down on the grass, looking over and Gamzee and Tavros, or GZ and AT, as I prefer to refer to them. I soon realized after that first day that they are Karkat's usual lunch buddies over here, and we've all formed an interesting little group. Currently, Gamzee is laying against Tavros's side and rambling about the invisible double rainbow in the sky.

"It's just the most amazing thing! I don't know where you guys are looking, but you're missing the motherfucking miracle of nature."

He points a wobbly finger to the sky, where all I can see is a bunch of gray clouds threatening rain.

"GZ, there ith nothing there."

"You're losing your mind, you dense fuck, I always knew it would happen. Actually, I don't think you ever even had one. It's just an empty, dark space filled with fucking butterflies and other disgusting shit that seems to fascinate you," Karkat growls, crossing his arms and leaning against the tree. He's dumped the contents of my backpack out onto the ground as payback for me throwing it at him.

"You're just thinking too much. You gotta relax," Gamzee drawls, letting his arm fall onto his stomach with a dull thud.

Tavros doesn't seem to know what to make of this.

"Gamzee, I'm actually quite sure that, uh, there is no rainbow today. Maybe you are, um, seeing shapes in the clouds, possibly?"

Gamzee gapes. "You're right, Tavbro! There're all kinds of motherfucking shapes up in those clouds! How'd you know?"

Tavros giggles, pleased, and I just roll my eyes. Karkat grumbles something about stoners and I close my eyes, take off my glasses, and lie back on the grass, letting the random chatter roll over me. It's been a relaxing day, and I'm not really in the mood to argue with any of these idiots.

After a few minutes of mindless banter, there's a dragging sound, and all of sudden Gamzee's lazy voice is a lot closer.

"C'mon, Karbro, we need to have us a talk."

I open my eyes and squint, glaring at them. Gamzee is now trying to pull Karkat up for whatever reason he's lodged into his doped up brain, and Karkat is trying to resist, but GZ is a lot stronger than he looks. Can't they shut up for two seconds?

"Let me go, Gamzee, you're not dragging me anywhere for one of your fucking 'feelings jams,' they're stupid and pointless and only stoned idiots like you have them! It's like some kind of gathering of emotionally disturbed, fucked up hippies!"

I can't help but snicker.

"Aw, c'mon, best friend, a feelings jam is just what you motherfucking need."

I'm just watching, enjoying the attention they're getting by being ridiculous, when Karkat turns, looks at me with a weird, unreadable look, and reluctantly lets Gamzee pull him to his feet, turning just slightly red.

"Fine. But I hope you've learned to keep your mouth shut since last time."

The clown laughs loudly. "Aw, you mean that time with Tere-"

I nearly choke on my own saliva when Karkat grabs the sides of Gamzee's face and squishes his cheeks hard to keep him from talking. It smudges the face paint, but he somehow keeps that toothy grin on his face.

"Shut. The fuck. Up. That was a long time ago! Just don't open your huge mouth this time, okay?"

A honk is all KK gets in answer, and apparently it's good enough. Gamzee doesn't just carry a bicycle horn around in his huge pocket, he says honk as well, and always gets this huge, lopsided grin when he does. None of us ever know how to respond.

They walk to the next tree and sit down, Gamzee laying across Karkat's outstretched legs and the latter shoving him off roughly. I follow them with my eyes until they start talking, and then lay back on the grass, preparing to enjoy the silence.

"So, uh, Sollux..."

I groan. Can't a nerd get some sleep at school? Tavros is nice and all, but really awkward to talk to. I get impatient when it takes him too long to finish his sentences. It reminds me of a server taking too long to respond and resetting. Gog, that's annoying.

"Yeah, AT?" I hold my forearm over my face as a sun shield. Way too bright, it's like it _wants _me to get a migraine.

"Did you, uh..." he wrinkles his nose. Is he seriously trying to make small talk? "Did Karkat ever, um tell you about that thing with Terezi? It's pretty, uh, funny, I think."

I stare at him, bored. "No."

He twiddled his thumbs nervously. "Oh. Would you like to, uh, hear it? If you don't mind, I mean."

With a muted sigh, I prop myself up on my elbows and look at him, eyes half shut. "Thure, amathe me with your story."

"Well, it's not, heh, it's not exactly a long story...but the last time Gamzee had a, um, feelings jam with Karkat, he told Terezi that Karkat liked her and she's been, er, rather pushy ever since."

That just wasted so much of my time. "Good to know."

I guess that explains Terezi's weird infatuation with KK, though. She never leaves him alone, and it pisses me off. It bothers him, too, but he still puts up with it and I don't know why. Well, okay, maybe now I do. It irks me for some reason, this weird...can I even call it a display of affection?

Tavros looks at me uncertainly before leaning back in his wheelchair and gazing out at nothing. I decide to stop being such a jerk and help the guy out a little in this little attempt at conversation.

"Tho, AT, if you don't mind my athking, what happened to..." I gesture vaguely at his lack of legs below the knee. He gets around pretty well, what with Gamzee constantly pushing his wheelchair, but I think it still really bothers him, not being able to walk.

He flushes slightly and doesn't look at me. "No, it's okay. I, um... Well, I used to live up north of here, on the coast-"

I cut him off. "Theriouthly? Me, too!"

He brightens instantly. "Really? That is a, uh, interesting coincidence! But, um, I lived there and was friends with a, uh, girl-"

"Imprethive for you, AT."

"Uh, t-thanks. But we were, um, LARPing one day over by some cliffs along the coast-"

"The fuck is LARPing?"

"Oh, uh, that stands for Live Action Role Playing. I was Peter Pan, and we, uh, we decided that I can fly. And we were d-doing that, and she pushed...well, it was an, uh, accident, but I kind of fell...and, um, was mostly paralyzed from the waist, uh, down. Also they had to, uh, amputate, as you can see, I guess. The, er, nerve endings were damaged, I believe."

I absorb this. What kind of horrible girl would just push some innocent kid like Tavros over a cliff? Because it's obvious she pushed him, no cautious person like him would just walk off the edge, even if they were role playing along the edge or whatever. The idea of someone doing this reminds me of something I'd hoped would never come up again, and I groan audibly.

"AT," I begin slowly, thinking over my question, "what wath thith girl'th name?"

"V-Vriska Serket."

Oh crap. Oh fuck. The memories definitely come back there, and I don't want to remember them. Not just the actual events, but the long lasting effects they had. It was a long time ago, but sometimes the images I remember are there in my nightmares.

"Sollux, are you, uh, okay? You are looking a bit pale. Er, not very pale, really, but a little and-"

"I knew her when I lived there," I spit out, staring at the ground. "We went to the same school, I was an idiot, and Bitchka made me do thome thingth I didn't want to do."

Tavros nods sympathetically, wide-eyed. "She could be rather, um, persuasive at times, don't you think?"

"Yeah. I gueth you would underthtand." I'm already leaning back again , lost in thought and remembering.

"If, um..." He leans forward slightly. "If you don't mind, I have noticed that talking may, um, help? Since I know what she's like."

I snort. "I had therapy afterwardth, I don't think I need to talk about it any more."

Tavros gives me a concerned look before averting his eyes. "If you are, uh, sure, I do not want to force you...but I thought it might be, um, rather helpful."

I sigh and sit up, resting my head in my hands. "Okay. You've convinthed me."

Clearing my throat and speaking quietly, I begin my story.


	6. 6 Flashback

Haha, sorry about that, had to divide this up somehow! It's still pretty long...anyhoo, have at this. This chapter may seem a bit rough, my apologies.

_- - - - - AWKWARD LINE BREAK - - - - -_

_I'm lounging around on my bed, staring at the ceiling and watching the fan blades spin. Different games are splayed around me, and my bed isn't made, but I don't bother to pick anything up. Instead, I just space out, wishing that for once, I could actually come home from school on Friday and look forward to the weekend. It holds nothing but hours and hours of me sitting in my room, alone. Being fourteen really sucks._

_Okay, I'm not completely alone, I do have my girlfriend Aradia. She's very quiet and serious, usually in the library or sitting next to me around the corner of the gym at lunch, but she's really sweet, and I like talking to her. The term 'girlfriend' doesn't have much meaning, she's just the only person that will stay with me, even if it's just to discuss the apocalypse and whether or not it involves zombies. Zombies all the way._

_A ding from my computer, which is constantly on, breaks me out of this random train of thought and I sit up, squinting at the screen. What the hell? Someone named arachnidsGrip is messaging me on Pesterchum. I don't know anyone with that name, who could..._

_Aw, crap. Arachnids. Spiders. It's got to be that freaky Vriska chick, she loves the things. She even loves the number eight, although apparently that's just because of her magic eight ball. Everyone just wishes it would 'magic' her away._

_arachnidsGrip [AG] began pestering twin_Armageddons [TA] at 5:38 pm_

_AG: Heeeeeeeey, Sollisp. :::;)_  
_TA: what do you want?_  
_AG: Oh, you mean you're not ecstatic that a girl is messaging you?_  
_AG: I was hoping for 8etter than that._  
_TA: oh my gog yay iit ii2 the biitchy 2piider girl me22agiing me ii am 2o happy iim goiing two cry tear2 of joy_  
_TA: ii2 that better or do ii need to go buy a confettii gun?_  
_AG: Wow, may8e I should just leave you to your computer and tell Aradia you're too 8usy 8eing an asshole to come._  
_AG: L8er, loser._  
_TA: waiit_  
_AG: That's what I thought._  
_TA: why are you talkiing two aa_  
_AG: Your girlfriend isn't as insocia8le as you, Captor_  
_AG: 8ut then, people actually understand her when she talks, so I guess that makes sense. :::;P_  
_TA: are you goiing two ju2t iin2ult my 2peech iimpediiment or 2hould I actually 2tart reading what come2 up on my 2creen?_  
_AG: Gog, so touchy!_  
_AG: I was just going to invite you to a party I'm having tonight._  
_TA: why would you invite me?_  
_TA: dont tell me the la2t two miinute2 of conver2atiion have been lo2t on you_  
_AG: Aradia wouldn't stop whining about how I invited her 8ut not you._  
_AG: Thank her, not me._  
_TA: fiine iill come_  
_AG: Gre8!_  
_AG: Oh, your dad has some of that special foreign liquor or wh8ever, right?_  
_TA: how do you know about that?_  
_AG: Simple, I have more friends than you._  
_AG: Sources, Captor, sources._  
_AG: Anyway, 8ring that and you might actually 8e a hit._  
_TA: ii dont thiink my dad wiill let me_  
_AG: Who cares?_  
_AG: Just 8ring it. Party starts at 8, 8e there on time._  
_TA: fiine_

_arachnidsGrip [AG] ceased pestering twin_Armageddons [TA] at 5:49_

_I lean back and run a hand through my hair, which is a mess. What even just happened? Apparently I've just been invited to one of Vriska Serket's crazy parties and asked to bring drinks. I'm not feeling so hot about this._

_I think it over for a few minutes, and it doesn't sound any more appealing. But Aradia wants me to go, and frankly I'm glad she's actually feeling up to going to a party, and with me. Plus, like Vriska said, I might actually meet some people. Make those strange things called friends. Sure, I'm now in charge of bringing liquor, but isn't that what's at all teenage parties? It's not like I'll drink any myself._

_I talk myself into it. Trotting cautiously down the hallway, I peek into my parents bed room, where the door is cracked. My mother is reading a book or a magazine or something, and she suddenly stands, causing me to shrink behind the door. But she's only getting up to shower, apparently, because I soon hear the water running._

_Continuing to the first floor of our apartment, I crouch down to find my dad. He's sitting in his favorite chair, doing something on his laptop. His liquor cabinet is in the kitchen...the question is, can I get in and out of it without alerting him?_

_Tiptoeing as quietly as possible, I manage to make it to the bottom of the stairs with any squeaks, and make sure my dad's head is turned to the left, away from me and the kitchen on the right. His attention successfully diverted, I sneak into the kitchen, carefully take out the key from the second drawer on the left, and unlock the cabinet._

_There's a sound from the living room, and I freeze._

_The weight on the chair seems to shift, but there are no footsteps, and I hear the clacking of the keys again. Safe._

_I ease open the cabinet door and peek inside. My dad is practically famous for his special beer; he won't drink anything else. It's got some special honey flavor in it, but has a really high alcohol content. I'm not supposed to touch the cabinet, let alone the bottles themselves._

_I take two and debate about taking a third, but decide not to push my luck and shut the cabinet softly, locking it and replacing the key in the drawer. Taking the stairs just as quietly, I stash the bottles in my bag, along with a jacket and my phone, and come down the stairs at a normal speed and volume._

_"Hey, Dad!"_

_"Sollux, I'm working. Can it wait?"_

_I shift my weight from one foot to the other and try not to think about what I'm asking. "I got invited to a party at a friend'th houthe tonight. Can I go?"_

_He looks at me sharply over the top of his laptop and glasses. "You got invited to a party?"_

_I nod slowly, sighing slightly at his incredulous tone._

_He raises an eyebrow and lowers his gaze back to the computer. "Sure, just be home by ten thirty. Make some friends. You trust the person, right?"_

_Oh my gog. "Yeah, thure."_

_"Okay, be careful." His attention turns completely away from me, and I let out the air I've been holding. I'm safe._

_I run back up the stairs to shower. I don't want to smell like I've had plates of microwave pizza and corn chips permeating my room for the past three days, which I have. I throw on a pair of jeans that actually passes my ankles without holes in the knees, a tee shirt, and an unbuttoned polo over the top. Red and blue plaid, of course. As a finishing touch, I run a bit of gel through my hair to spike it up, and I'm ready._

_Sliding into my desk, I wake up my computer screen to check the time. It's already six-thirty, I took longer to shower than I thought. To pass the remaining time, I play a few rounds of Solitaire, then grab my bag and head for the door._

_My mom is downstairs now and calls after me, sounding confused._

_"Sollux, dear, where are you going at this time of night?"_

_Dad doesn't look up. "He's been invited to a party."_

_"A party? Oh, that's wonderful! Make some friends, Sollux!"_

_I roll my eyes behind my glasses and pull the door shut. "Thankth, Mom, bye."_

_I'm free. I'm out and I'm free. Since she has so many parties and they're so loud, I know exactly where the Vriska lives, and it's not far. Carrying my backpack carefully, I get there in under ten minutes and knock gingerly on the door. A tall, graceful girl opens the door and looks me up and down. I recognize her from school and lisp a greeting._

_"Uh, hi, Kanaya. Did Vrithka tell you I wath coming?"_

_She nods curtly. "Yes, Sollux, please come in. She instructed me to have you leave the items in the kitchen. Follow me."_

_I follow her as she glides away, her skirt making her movements seem almost fluid. I find myself wondering what a classy girl like her is doing at a party with Vriska, but who knows with these people._

_She points to a large bowl filled with ice, sodas and various drinks poking out. I stick the beers in there, feeling rather proud of myself for accomplishing this. Then I spy Aradia, and she gives me one of her bright smiles._

_"Hello, Sollux!"_

_"Hey, AA. How'th the party?"_

_She glances around the room, which is slowly filling with teenagers from our middle school. "Interesting so far, I suppose. Kind of crowded. I heard that you brought some of your father's liquor."_

_I nod, feeling guilty when she gives me a half disappointed, half admiring look._

_"I never thought you would come to a party like this, much less be the one to bring the drinks."_

_I give her a surprised look. "You uthually come to thethe partieth?"_

_She shrugs and grins, looking around. "I kind of like the craziness. It's a nice change." Her grin widens and she grabs my hands. "Let's dance!"_

_I'm caught off balance and nearly fall. "Whoa, okay, what? I can't danthe!"_

_She laughs, and the sound makes me smile through my awkwardness. "Silly, just get into the music. It's fun!"_

_I obey, and pretty soon we're dancing with the rest of them, and we're both getting hot and sweaty but still having fun in the crowded, noisy room. I start to think that maybe I could get used to this! Needing a break from the dance floor, also known as the Serket's living room, I leave Aradia to the music and go to get some ice cold punch. Vriska is waiting for me, with her long hair done up in spiderweb clips and her heels clicking on the kitchen linoleum. Wonderful._

_"So you did get yourself of that diiiiiiiingy room of yours and out on the street. Good for you, Sollisp," she says, grinning toothily. The eyepatch she likes to wear for...whatever reason, is pushed up on her forehead._

_"Yeah, and I brought what you athked for, too. Kanaya thowed me where to put it." I point._

_"Oh, yeah, that was great. Thanks, I guess. Have you ever actually tried it?"_

_I shake my head. "Not allowed."_

_Her grin widens. "I bet you're thirsty. Come here."_

_She grabs my arm tightly and leads me to the table, where there are bowls of chips, dip, crackers, and lots of different beverages. My two bottles are in the center, almost completely empty, and I gape._

_"Have you already uthed it all?"_

_She laughs wildly and picks up two glasses, holding one out for me. I notice that her face is flushed._

_"Of course, idiot, it's the best thing about this party! Try some! Here, take another for your little girlfriend."_

_She downs her glass in three swallows and forces the other into my hands, then hands me a second glass for Aradia. I start to feel panicky._

_"Vrithka, I really don't want to tr-"_

_Her eyes narrow dangerously and she leans forward, right into my face, her breath smelling of alcohol. "Drink it now, Captor."_

_I try another protest._

_"Theriouthly, it'th not-"_

_I almost choke as she tips the glass into my mouth, and a good portion of liquid goes down, though I think at least half of it went straight to my lungs. I cough and hack and she laughs, holding the empty glass, apparently not caring about what's going to be a stain on the floor._

_"See, isn't it amazing? I bet you want some moooooooore!"_

_I regain my breath, and the taste in my mouth is odd, but strangely enough, it is good. Very sweet. Just like honey. It makes me relax for the first time this evening, and I slowly nod._

_"Um, yea, I guethth I'll have a little more. Can I get one for AA, too?"_

_She laughs again, the malicious smile never leaving her lips._

_"Of course! Take as much as you want."_

_Refilling my glass with the strange concoction, she stares at me until I swallow it all, and I can feel myself relaxing even more. The people dancing start to blur, but I can still see Vriska's grin clearly, and I chuckle, almost hiccuping._

_"Nithe lipthtick, ehehehe!"_

_"It's my favorite shade of blue. So fucking awesome."_

_She tops off my glass again, spilling a little in the process, and then shoos me back to Aradia. When I glance over my shoulder, she's drinking directly out of the bottle._

_"Heeey, AA," I slur, shakily holding out her glass. "Thith ith my dad'th thtuff, it'th really good."_

_She takes it, sipping delicately before watching my face._

_"Sollux, how much have you had?"_

_I try to think, but it's awfully hard. All I can remember is Vriska's laugh and wide grin._

_"Uuuhhh, a couple glathes, maybe? I don't know, who careth?" I giggle and lean heavily against the wall, taking a large gulp of my glass. Oh wait, it's empty already. When did that even happen?_

_"I'll be right back, AA, I'm going to get thome more. You want any?"_

_She gives me a concerned look, but it's a bit blurry, and the floor doesn't feel very solid, so I'm not paying very close attention._

_"Sollux, I really think you should stop drinking that. Maybe you should lie down."_

_What? No! This is so fun! Vriska was right. I should have tried this years ago!_

_"No way, AA, it'th great!" I grin again, then scowl as she takes a step towards me, reaching out her free hand._

_"Sollux, I really think you should stop," she says firmly, taking hold of my arm. "Go home and get some sleep."_

_My voice rises without me noticing, and all of a sudden I'm pissed. It's loud in the room anyway, it doesn't matter._

_"No way, it'th fun and I'm having a good time. Let go of me! Or do you not want me to have fun for onthe in my life?"_

_I yank my arm away and glare at her, breathing heavily and trying to stay focused on her face. Another gulp or two gives me some more confidence._

_"Who...who even are you...to thay...that I can't do thith...you had Vrithka invite me!" I need another swig to finish my thought._

_Aradia is looking at me, and I can't quite see her expression, but it makes me angrier, whatever it is._

_"Sollux, I'm taking you home. You're drunk."_

_She takes one of my arms tightly and tries to grab the drink out of my hand. At the same time, I feel someone's hair brush my neck and Vriska's voice over my shoulder._

Get her out of the way!

_I yell something unintelligible and move forward. It happens in slow motion. I shove Aradia as hard as I can, which is pretty hard despite being inebriated, and she trips over her feet trying to catch her balance, knocking other people over. She falls, and the back of her head hits the corner of a table. An audible crack cuts clearly through the music, and suddenly she's lying on the floor, pale, not moving, and the back of her hair has blood oozing onto it._

_I stare down at the hazy sight, not sure what just happened, but I become aware of the music stopping and everyone's eyes on me, staring with their mouths open. A few girls rush forward to help Aradia up, but she's not moving._

_"Oh my gog."_

_"Call 911!"_

_"But if the police come-"_

_"What if she's dead?"_

_"Oh gog, he killed her!"_

_Everyone's words and what just happen finally catches up to me, and I stumble over to Aradia, trying to reach her, but the people gathering around push me back, glaring. I'm not sure, but I think I may be screaming at them. After several tries, I give up and make my way to the door. I run home, falling several times, and trying to keep the tears from my eyes._

_As I burst in the door, my dad jumps and turns to look at me, his expression going from annoyance to overwhelming concern. He carefully sets the laptop down and rushes over, catching me as my knees threaten to collapse._

_"Sollux, what happened?"_

_I sob wordlessly, wiping at my runny nose and trying to catch my breath._

_"Sollux-" He pauses and sniffs my mouth, his face becoming unbearably stern. "Sollux, was there alcohol at that party?"_

_I nod hopelessly, sniffing and taking off my glasses to clean them. The already blurry scene becomes blurrier, but I can feel my father's grip tighten on me and hear him draw in air through clenched teeth. I am in so much trouble._

_The whole story comes out upstairs, after my mother has been woken up, and as things gradually begin to look more clear, I become conscious of the looks my parents are giving me. Furious anger and acute disappointment are main the contenders, and I want to sink into the floor and disappear._

_When I get to the part about Aradia, my mother gasps and covers her mouth, and I can see a vein in my dad's forehead jump. Sirens can now be heard down the street, and both police and an ambulance can be distinguished. I want to sink lower._

_After the whole story is out, my parents just sit there, every emotion possible crossing their face, while I sniffle and feel the beginnings of one of my blinding headaches coming on, twice as bad when combined with the_  
_hangover._

_They send me to bed, and my sentence is prolonged until morning. My dad can be heard getting his jacket, and through the pounding in my ears I hear him tell my mom that he's going down to the Serket's house._

_When he comes back upstairs an hour later, I listen closely while cradling my head, and hear that Aradia is going to the hospital, and may need surgery._

_I want to die._

_The next few weeks are complete and utter torture unlike anything I'd ever imagined. I'm kept home for a week, basically under house arrest, and stay in my room to do homework, only coming out for meals. The internet is disconnected and my games are taken away, and when I finish my homework, my parents give me chores._

_At the end of this punishment, I go back to school, but it's worse. Everywhere I go, before I even walk into class, I can feel eyes on me. Whispers stop when I come near and start when I leave, and dirty looks are thrown constantly. I even discover a few notes on my desk, telling me explicitly what they want to do to me for hurting Aradia like that._

_I become known as the nerd who tried to kill his girlfriend, and every second of the school day is a constant reminder of how quickly my life turned into this hell. I would gladly go back to the way it was before._

_Even Vriska seems mad at me. She sends me messages and passes me in the hallways, saying that she never would have let me come if she knew I would do_

_that. Imagine, my own girlfriend gets hurt by her attempts to keep me included and help me feel better._

_A few anonymous messages to my Pesterchum pop up, describing the things I said to her and how I might as well go put myself in a hospital bed. As much as I try to ignore them, all of these things build up, and I find myself unable to eat. The food isn't appetizing, and all I can taste is that bittersweet honey flavor._

_Our family goes to visit Aradia in the hospital constantly, and though her parents try to be courteous, I can tell that they blame me. There's a certain hardness in their eyes when they speak to me, and they're reluctant to leave us alone in the room with her._

_The doctors say that she should be fine, she has a bad concussion and may not wake up for a while, but there is nothing else wrong with her. She does wake up, eventually, and I think that I'm saved. I apologize to her over and over, and even come to tears at one point, but she just stares at me blankly._

_"It's all right, Sollux, I am not angry with you," she monotones, her face expressionless._

_"Are...are you thure?" I ask, cleaning off my glasses with a pitiful sniffle._

_"Quite sure."_

_I look at her, and it's like she's a shell. When she comes back to school, she's greeted enthusiastically with flowers and hugs and pats on the back, all of which she accepts, but she has no personality anymore. She stares unseeingly at whoever speaks to her, and says as little as possible. Gradually, her friends draw away from her, but if I try to talk to her or even walk with her, suddenly she is surrounded by a mob of people, protecting her from me, the threat._

_She never even takes notice._

_My parents notice my lack of eating, but they don't notice when the cutting starts until one day I'm out of clean long sleeved shirts and my mom goes to look through my laundry._

_"Sollux, you have plenty of shirts, why do you need me to do the wash now? The laundromat is so crowded today..." She trails off, long at my wrist._

_I suddenly realize that I have no protection, and try to cover it up, but she holds my arm up and asks me shakily why I am doing this to myself._

_I yell at her and stomp into my room, slamming the door, and then crumple onto my bed, feeling completely and utterly empty, hating myself._

_A week later I'm in therapy, and we've making plans to move._

_The therapist diagnoses me with bipolar disorder, which apparently becomes evident only in stressful situations, and OCD, which we already knew about. The woman tells me cheerfully that she hopes I feel better soon, and that I get off to a good new start when we move. I keep my eyes glued to the floor._

_I say goodbye to Aradia, and she acknowledges me with only a vague nod and a quiet, "Good luck."_

_I delete my old Pesterchum and recreate it with a slight tweak to the name, and when the hate messages and notes stop coming, I'm able to pick myself up a bit. I stop the cutting, with a little help from my mom's watchful eye, and begin eating the foods given to me. After a week or two of me regaining both physical and mental strength, and everyone settling into the new apartment, I go back to school._

_My parents have signed me up for a private school, and I devote myself completely to my classes, mostly computers. I move quickly, but at the end of the day, my mom asks me how my day was and I just give a, "Fine" and go upstairs to mess around on my computer. I'm normal, but I'm not myself. But my mom suggests more therapy, and I immediately perk up, trying to actually have interaction with students at school, but she still isn't satisfied. So once freshman year ends, we move again, settle in, and we stay._

I finish the story, having stopped in the middle to regain control of my croaky voice and convince myself that I am only saying words, I am not reliving events. It helps keep the lumps out of my throat, and I am composed when I look back at Tavros.

Oh gog, the kid is practically sobbing into his sweater.

"AT, thtopp, oh my gog, pleathe, it'th okay!"

I stretch over and pat his back awkwardly, and he just hiccups, trying to regain his breath.

"I am, uh, sorry, but that was just so-" hic -"so sad, and I feel very, um, bad, for you, and-" hic -"oh, it's horrible!"

My expression softens even more, and I can't help but smile every so slightly.

"You're a nithe guy, AT. Don't worry about me, it'th pretty much over."

He gives me a shy smile, lip still trembling.

"I am, uh, very glad that we can help you, um, Sollux."

"Thankth."

All of a sudden I'm bowled over by something heavy, and my face is in the grass. Just what I need, now my face can be even more colorful.

"What'd you do to Tavbro, motherfucker?" Gamzee growls, heaving me back up by the shirt color. Holy shit, the guy is stronger than I realized!

Tavros squeaks and pulls on Gamzee's shirt sleeve, while I try not to look that crazy clown in eye. My glasses landed a few feet away, but I don't move.

"G-Gamzee, no, stop, he didn't do anything! Really I was just, uh, it was a, um, sad story, is all! Please let go!"

Gamzee's face softens under the makeup, and his grips loosens, but before I'm completely off the hook someone else knocks Gamzee over and he's sprawled across my stomach.

"Gamzee, you idiotic excuse for a juggalo, get your damn clown hands off him! You're going to break his twiggy body!"

I shove Gamzee off me and shade my eyes, looking up to see Karkat glaring at Gamzee, who is now grinning as he rolls over to lay next to Tavros's chair.

"Calm your tits, Kar, I'm off. Just wanted to make sure my Tavbro was all right."

Tavros turns pink and smiles, and it's so cheesy that I can taste it. Karkat looks like he wants to pull his sweater over his head and disappear, but he just rubs his arm awkwardly.

"Well, fuck, fine, you asshat."

I clear my head of the last ten minute's conversation and grin wickedly at Karkat.

"Aw, KK, you _do_ care! I am thwooning!"

He turns an angry red color and stomps on my foot, eliciting a yelp and a curse from me.

"Shut the fuck up, I was just trying to keep that weak little face of yours intact."

"Oh, thank you, KK, my fathe ith eckthtremely grateful. It never thought you would turn into thuch a gentleman, getting rid of the wild clownth,." I can't even help it, my mood has completely flipped up and I crack up.

"Shut...Shut up, Captor!" He aims a kick at me, but for once in my life I manage a bit of physical prowess and grab his leg, pulling him down to land in the grass hard.

"OW, FUCK!"

My stomach hurts from laughing at him, he's got grass in his hair and he's flailing around on his stomach, glaring at me vehemently and just generally looking cute-

I stop laughing. Did I just think of Karkat as "cute?" Okay, words that apply to him include, "bitchy," "pissy," "irritable," and "picky," not "cute!" Obviously I'm having an off day. This is just too weird. Next I'll be thinking Gamzee will actually be willing to go to college.

"What the fuck are you looking at, you douche canoe?" He mumbles, sitting up with a wince and rubbing his ribs. "Fuck, what the hell was that for? I was trying to help you."

I avert my eyes and stare at the ground absently, feeling my face get hot with embarrassment. "Thorry."

Lunch continues as normal, and I push any out of the ordinary thoughts from my mind. None of us notice a single girl detach herself from a group a few meters away and pull out a cell phone.


	7. Author's Cutoff

I'm very sorry to tell you all this, but I will not be continuing Primary Colors. I know that I said I would continue and finish this, and at the time, I meant it, but a great deal of personal dilemma has come up and I have made the – no exaggeration – extremely difficult decision to discontinue it. I will leave what has been written up, but I have deleted all the files on my computer and will not be making new ones.

I thank all of you followers and watchers, your comments, messages and reviews have been amazing and really boosted my confidence in my writing! But my decision is final. Thank you for reading this, and please don't spam me if you're angry about this.

I do, however, have a parting gift for all of you amazing, supportive people. Before I made the decision to let this story go, I drew a cover picture. I will soon post that on my deviantArt account, dashdoggirl. It is the last you will ever hear on this story, unless you so choose to message me _politely _and are curious as to why I decided to cut Primary Colors off. I can't guarantee I will answer fully, as it is personal, but please don't try to change my mind, this is hard for me as it is.

Thank you again,

Logical Dreamer


End file.
